Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Post-Holiday Greenery: Moss Balls

I had to explain to a very confused hubs several times as to why I was going to Michael's to make "moth balls" (or so he heard) this weekend. After some very descriptive gesturing and shooting each other looks, we established that it was Moss (not moth) balls we were after. Progress.

Well, I did two different things with my moss balls. I'm sorry, but it's just really fun to say. Moss balls. Moss balls. I'm done.

I made a topiary a la my previous post on Holiday greenery. I bought all the necessary components, except I couldn't find any boxwood ANYWHERE, so using moss is a great alternative, plus it really fits into any season.

I also made moss balls (there I go again) in varying sizes to display in my hurricanes and clear glass containers which, up until recently, still held ornaments.

Overall, I'm really pleased with the result, and these were really easy to make.
For the topiary, I got two different kinds of moss, the green kind that comes in sheets (I got 3 packages and it made about 7 balls of varying sizes) and the dried spanish moss that comes in the bag for the base.

To secure the moss to the styrofoam floral ball that I used for the base of the ball, I actually used straight sewing pins instead of hot glue.

Worked like a charm! Just roll the moss sheet around the ball and secure with straight pins until covered.
Make cuts wherever you need to to overlap the remaining area. You can use the bits you trim off to cover any bald patches.

It will look sort of wonky, but never fear, just trim off the excess and smoosh (yes, this is a technical term) the edges together to cover the styrofoam.

Et Voila! You, my friend, have made a moss ball.

To make it a topiary, make sure you have a styrofoam base, a stick or piece of wood cut to the appropriate height, a vessel and some hot glue. Then, make a sort of pilot hole by jabbing (yes, another technical term) the stick into the base and then the topiary ball, and fill with hot glue, then attach. Hot glue some moss around the base to cover the styrofoam and you're done!

My topiary pot was originally a terra cotta, but I just spray painted it with some left over paint from my Chair project to give it a crisper look. Not bad for an hours' work, eh?

About Me

I am a compulsive rummager. I thrift, dig, stare at and re purpose pieces to give them new life and create a style that's 100% mine. Who knows what kind of stuff I'm up to, but I hope you like it.
I can be found at salvage yards, goodwill and Bloomies. So...figure that one out, if you can.
Thanks for stopping by and Stay classy!